Lamp connector



J. M. PISTEY LAMP CONNECTOR Oct. 13, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April17, 1962 Fig. 3.

J. M. PISTEY Oct. 13, 1964 LAMP CONNECTOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April17, 1962 Inventor= John M. Pisteg 5 vZiM/CLM His Attorhgg United StatesPatent 3,152,852 LAMP CONNECTOR John M. Pistey, Fairfield, Comp,assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York FiledApr. 17, 1962, Ser. No. 188,206 '7 Claims. (Ql. 339-112) The presentinvention relates to connectors for electric :lamps. More particularly,this invention concerns itself with connectors having a movable plungerto position the connector contacts for interengagement with cooperatingcontacts of high intensity electric lamps.

Certain prior art lamps of the incandescent type, such as photographiclamps, are specially constructed so that they are capable of operatingat a very high intensity. As a consequence of their high intensity,these lamps also operate at a very high ambient temperature. Oneexemplary form of such lamps is the quartz iodine lamp. This lampusually operates at a temperature approximating 400 C. and is utilizedin various photographic applications. To effectively energize a lampsuch as the quartz iodine lamp, it is essential that the connector orsocket therefor be capable of withstanding the very high temperaturesassociated with the lamp. An important object of the present inventionis to provide a new and improved lamp connector which is constructed tooperate effectively under very high temperatures.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved connector ofthe type equipped with a movable plunger to position the contacts forinterengagement with a lamp.

A further object of my invention is to provide an improved lampconnector wherein the contacts are effectively protectedfrom hightemperatures.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improvedconnector for use with a bi-pin lamp, which connector is of verysimplified and rugged construction and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture.

In carrying out my invention, in one form thereof, I

have provided an insulating base with a cavity opening into front andrear walls thereof. A contact positioning plunger is arranged in thecavity for reciprocating movement relative to the insulating base. Thisplunger includes a recess in the front face thereof and a pair of spacedapart slots which extend transversely to the direction of movement ofthe plunger and open into the recess from the'outer wall of the plunger.A pair of elongated contacts are pivotally supported in the base on therearward side of the front wall. Each of these contacts is disposed in adirection transverse to the path of movement of the plunger and extendsthrough an associated slot of the plunger into the recess to expose oneend of the contact from the front wall of the base. The contacts arespring biased into engagement with the slots of the The improvedconnector incorporating this very high temperatures, such as thetemperatures normal- .ly incident to association withhigh intensitylamps.

Further aspects of my invention will become apparent hereinafter, andthe specification concludes with claims" particularly pointing out anddistinctly claimingthe subject matter which I regard as my invention.The invention, however, as to organization and method of operation,together with further objects and advantages thereof, may

best be understood by reference to the following description when takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an improved lamp connector embodying myinvention in one form thereof; also included in this figure is a quartziodine lamp which may suitably interengage the connector, the lamp beingshown partially by dotted lines and partially in full;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the improved lamp connector;

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the improved lamp connector;

FIG. 4 is an exploded View of the improved lamp connector with all itsparts;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the improved lamp connector similar to that ofFIG. 2, but showing the position of the pivoted contacts by means ofdotted lines; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional View taken between the lines 6--6 of FIG. 5, andalso showing the quartz iodine lamp in engagement with the lampconnector.

Referring first to FIG. 1 of the drawings, there is shown a connector orsocket 1 which embodies one form of my invention. This particularconnector 1 has been designed for eificient, simplified, and economicalelectrical interengagement with a quartz iodine lamp unit 5. The lampunit 5, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, comprises a relatively thick glassreflector 7 (FIG. 1) and a lens 9 (FIG. 6) which are integrallyassociated to help hermetically seal the lamp filament and inleads (notshown) against moisture, dirt, and contamination. For electricallyenergizing the filament of lamp unit 5, a pair of contact pins 11 areprojected outwardly from spaced apart lamp bases 13. The axes of theselamp pins 11 are parallel to the direction in which the lamp unit 5faces, as illustrated for one of the lamp pins in FIG. 6. Uponenergization of the lamp contact pins 11 by a suitable power source, thefilament of lamp unit 5 incandesces to provide an illumination of highintensity.

For supporting lamp unit 5, it is designed to be seated against anappropriate ledge provided in a suitable fixture (not shown). The lampunit 5 is secured to this fixture by means of a collar or clamp (notshown).

T nrning now to an important aspect of the present invention, whichconcerns the provision of a new and improved lamp connector capable ofwithstanding very high temperatures, attention is directed in particularto FIGS. 2-4. To afford maximum simplicity, as shown best in FIG. 4,connector 1 comprises but six basic parts. Insulating base 15 ispreferably constructed from a suitable ceramic material, such as forexample, porcelain, and is therefore in my preferred embodiment, capableof effectively withstanding temperatures of over 1,000" C. As shown inFIG. 4, the base 15 has a generally U-shaped configuration, with thearms 17 extending outwardly in divergent fashion from opposite ends ofbody section 19. For fastening the lamp connector 1 to a fixture, base15 also includes a connecting section or web 21 which integrally joinsthe inner rear sides of the arms 17 (FIG. 4) and includes a screwreceiving aperture 22. The body section 19 of the insulating base 15 hasa cavity 23 of generally oblong crosswise configuration (as shown inFIGS. 1 and 4) which extends between front side 24 and the rear side 25thereof. More particularly, the cavity 23 comprises two opposedelongated walls 26a and cylindrically curved end walls 2612, beingsuitably dimensioned to receive a contact positioning plunger 27 whichis reciprocably arranged therein.

As shown in FIG. 3, the cavity 23 of base 15 has a pair of opposedgrooves 29 formed in the cylindrically curved end walls 26b thereof.These grooves extend from the rear wall 25 of base 15 toward the frontwall 24- of the base, but terminate short of the front wall 24 of thetionship to section 4-7 on the other end thereof.

base at shoulders 31 (FIG. 3). The plunger 27 has an outer peripherywhich generally conforms to the crosswise configuration of cavity 23.Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, opposed elongated walls 33 and cylindricallycurved end walls 35 fit within associated walls 26a and 26b of the basecavity 23 so that the plunger 27 assumes a complementary associationwith the cavity 23. To guide and.

of the connector base.

The plunger 27 is preferably constructed of a suitable ceramic material,such as porcelain, to enable it to effectively withstand hightemperatures in the same manner as described for base 15. For biasingthe plunger 27 to its normal outermost position and making connectionsto the lamp pins 11, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a pair of rigid contactblades 39 are provided. As an important aspect of my invention, thesecontact blades are specially arranged in the connector 1 so that theycooperate with the plunger 27 and are substantially shielded from thefront side of the connector by the base 15 and the plunger 27. Moreparticularly, as shown in PEG. 1, the plunger 27 includes an oblongrecess 41 which opens outwardly into the front surface 43 thereof, and apair of spaced apart slots 45 (FIG. 4) which extend transverselyto theaxis of movement of the plunger 27 and open into the recess 41 from nearthe curved end walls 35 thereof (as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6). The majorand minor axes .of the recess 41 of the plunger 27 are in consonancewith the major and minor axes, respectively, of base cavity As shown inFIGS. 3 and 4, each of the rigid contact blades 39 is of elongatedconfiguration and comprises a flat body section 47 which includes aterminal end 4), and a contact tongue 51 formed in parallel steppedrela- Between the contact end and terminal end of each of the contactblades 39, a pair of opposed depending limbs 53 are formed in elongatedsides of body section 47, as shown in FIG. 4. These limbs 53 provide apair of aligned bearing apertures 55 for pivotally supporting eachcontact blade 39, as shall be described hereinafter.

More particularly, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, each of the arms 17 ofbase 15 has an elongated recess 57 formed therein behind front wall 24.The recesses 57 in the arms fr? are outwardly divergent and theycommunicate with the cavity 25 in which the plunger 27 reciprocates.Within each recess 57, as shown in PEG. 3, there is positioned the flatbody section 47 of an associated contact blade. The contact blade 39 ispivotally supported in this recess 57 by means of a rivet 55 extendedthrough aligned supporting apertures 61 formed in the side walls of thearms 17. To be more specific, rivet 5? is extended through supportingapertures 61 inthe opposed walls of arm 17 and through bearing apertures55 of the limbs of each contact, so that the contact is pivotallymovable in trunnion-like fashion around the rivet. 1

As shown in PEG. 3, each of the contact blades 39 is pivotally supportedby the insulating base 15 behind front wall 24 (FIG. 4), and it extendsin a direction perpendicular to the path of movement of the plunger 27.The contact tongue 51 of each contact blade extends through anassociated one of the transverse slots 45 ofthe plunger so that itenters into the oblong recess 41 of the plunger (as shown in FlG.'2) andis exposed thereby for engagement with one of the lamp pins 11. Each ofthe contact blades 39 is also pivotally supported by means of its limbs53 for movement about an axis which is spaced outwardly in a transversedirection from the path of movement of the plunger 27. With such anarrangement of the contact blades 39 in my improved connector 1, thebody sections 47 of the blades are located behind the front wall 24 ofthe base 15 and part of plunger 27 (as shown in FIG. 5), and aretherefore effectively shielded from the lamp unit 5 with which theconnector 1 is associated.

To bias the plunger 27 outwardly to its normal position and provide thedesired contact wipe for each of the contact tongues 51, a coiledcompression spring 63 has been provided for each contact blade 39. Asshown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 6, a terminal screw 65 is in threadedengagement with the terminal end 49 of each of the contact blades 3?. Asshown best in FIG. 6, and also shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a well 67 isformed adjacent the terminal ends 49 of the contact blades 39. Thecompression spring 63 extends from a seat 69 in this well 67, as shownin FIG. 6, to the inner surface of the terminal end of the contactblade. The compression spring 63 is laterally positioned at the blade 39by means of an annular lip 71 (FIG. 4) around which one end of thespring 63 extends. The spring 63 runs in compression between the bottomof the well 6'7 and the inner surface of the terminal end 49 of thecontact blade 39, as shown in FIG. 6, to normally bias each contactblade 39 in a counterclockwise direction of rotation about its rivet 59.The contact tongue 51 of each of the contacts 39 is thus biasedoutwardly toward the front side 24 of the lamp connector 1 forengagement with an associated lamp pin 11.

As previously mentioned, the contact blades 39 are arranged so that theyextend through transverse slots 45 of the plunger 27. Due to the biasingforces imparted to the blades 39 by springs 63, these blades engageouter shoulders 73 of the slots 45 (FIGS. 4 and 6) to bias the plunger27 towards its outermost normal position. Upon engagement of lamp bases13 with plunger 27, as shown representatively in FIG. 6, the lampcontact pins 11 are inserted into engagement with contact tongues 51 ofthe connector 1, and these pins 11 act upon contact tongues 51 to pivotthe two contact blades 39 in a clockwise direction of rotation (viewingFIG. 6) against the biasing forces of the springs 63 until they reachthe position indicated in FIG. 6. After the contact tongues 51 have beeninitially engaged by the lamp pins 11, the plunger 27 then engagementwith the contact pin 11 of the lamp unit 5.

As previously mentioned, the lamp unit 5 is secured to a suitablefixture (not shown) by means of a collar or clamp (not shown). Thiscollar or the clamp also may be arranged to press the lamp unit 5 intoengagement with the connector 1 to provide the desired electricalenergization for the lamp.

It will now, therefore, be seen that my new and improved lamp connector,such as herein illustrated, provides a simple and effective arrangementwhich is operable under very high temperatures. The construction of thisconnector is very compact, it conveniently lends itself to simplifiedinstallation and it is also low in cost. In addition, since the contacttongues 51 are positioned for engagement with the lamp pins 11 by meansof a reciprocating plunger 27, the connector 1 embodying the presentinvention may be efiiciently utilized with lamps having a broad range oftolerances. The connector of the present invention, therefore, has animproved flexibility of application. It should be realized that certainaspects of my invention may be efficiently and beneficially incorporatedin numerous other types of lampholders.

While in accordance with the. patent statutes, I have described what atpresent is considered to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, itwill be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes andmodifications may be made therein without departing from my invention,and I, therefore, aim in the following claims to cover said frontalwall, said plunger having a recess formed in a frontal face thereof, apair of spaced apart slots formed in-said plunger, said slots extendingtransversely to the direction of movementof said plungerand opening into'said recess from theexterior of said plunger, a pair of contactspivotallysupportedin said base on the rearward side of said frontal--wall thereby-to shield portions of said contacts by means includingsaid frontal wall, each of said contacts being disposed in a directiontransverse to the direction of movement of said plunger and extendingthrough'an associated slot of said plunger into said recessfor'engagemen'twith an associated contact of said lamp, andmeansfor'bi'asing said contacts into engagement with theslots of saidplungertourge said plunger toward the frontal wall of said base forpositioning said contacts, whereby said base and said plungersubstantially shield said contacts from said lamp.

2. A connector for a lamp comprising an insulating base with a cavityopening into frontal and rear walls thereof, a contact positioningplunger arranged in said cavity for reciprocating movement toward andaway from said frontal wall, said plunger having a frontal and a backwall, with a recess being formed in said frontal wall thereof, a pair ofspaced apart slots formed in said plunger, said slots extending througha side wall of said plunger and opening into said recess from theexterior of said plunger in front of said back wall, a pair of flatelongated contacts pivotally supported in said base on the rearward sideof said frontal wall of said base thereby to shield portions of saidcontacts by means including said frontal wall, said contacts beingdisposed in generally coplanar relationship to each other in a planenormally parallel to said frontal wall of said base, each of saidcontacts being disposed in a direction transverse to the direction ofmovement of said plunger and extending through an associated slot ofsaid plunger, one end of each of said contacts being disposed in saidrecess for engagement with an associated contact of said lamp, and

spring means for biasing said contacts into engagement with the frontedges of said slots in said plunger to urge said plunger toward thefrontal wall of said base for positioning said contacts, whereby saidbase and said plunger substantially shield said contacts from said lamp.

3. The connector of claim 2 wherein the spring means includes twoseparate compression springs, each of said compression springs beingarranged to act upon the end of an associated contact opposite to theend of said contact disposed within the recess of said plunger.

4. A connector for a lamp comprising an insulating base with a cavityopening into frontal and rear Walls thereof, said cavity having agenerally oblong crosswise configuration, a contact positioning plungerof insulating material arranged in said cavity, said plunger having anoblong crosswise configuration and arranged in complementary engagementwith said cavity for reciprocating movement in said cavity toward andaway from said frontal wall, a recess formed in a frontal face of saidplunger, a pair of spaced apart slots formed in said plunger, said slotsextending transversely to the direction of movement of said plunger andopening into said recess from the exterior of said plunger, a pair offlat elongated contacts, bearing means for rotatably supporting saidcontacts intermediate the ends thereof, said bearing means forsaidcontactsbeing disposed transversely outwardly from saidcavity and saidcontacts being rotatably supported vby said bearing means on therearward side of tion transverse to the direction of movement of saidplunger and extending through an associated slot of said plunger, oneend of each of said contacts being disposed in said recess forengagement with an associated contact of said lamp, and a compressionspring for biasing the other end of each of said contacts intoengagement with one of the slots of said plunger thereby to urge saidplunger toward the frontal wall of said base for positioning saidcontacts, whereby said base and said plunger substantially shield saidcontacts from said lamp.

5. A connector for a lamp comprising a generally U- shaped insulatingbase, said base including a body section with a cavity opening intofrontal and rear walls of said base, and a pair of outwardly divergentarms integrally connected to'said body section, said arms each includinga recess disposed on the rearward side of said frontal and rear walls,the recesses of said arms being in communication with said cavity andoutwardly divergent therefrom, said cavity having a generally oblongcrosswise configuration, a contact positioning plunger of insulatingmaterial arranged in said cavity, said plunger having an oblongcrosswise configuration and arranged in complementary engagement withsaid cavity for reciprocating movement in said cavity toward and awayfrom said frontal Wall, a recess formed in a frontal face of saidplunger, a pair of spaced apart slots formed in said plunger, said slotsextending transversely to the direction of movement of said plunger andopening into the recess of said plunger from the exterior of a side wallof said plunger, a pair of flat elongated contacts disposed rearwardlyof the frontal wall of said base, bearing means for pivotally supportingeach of said contacts, each of said contacts being pivotally supportedby said bearing means between its ends within an associated one of therecesses of said arms, said bearing means for said contacts beingdisposed transversely outwardly from said cavity and said contacts beingpivotally supported by said bearing means in said recesses of said armsthereby to shield portions of said contacts by means including saidfrontal wall, said contacts being disposed in generally coplanarrelationship to each other in a plane normally parallel to said frontalwall of said base, each of said contacts being disposed in a directiontransverse to the direction of movement of said plunger and extendingthrough an associated slot of said plunger, one end of each of saidcontacts being disposed in said recess of said plunger for engagementwith an associated contact of said lamp, and a compression spring forbiasing the other end of each of said contacts into engagement with oneof the slots of said plunger thereby to urge said plunger toward thefrontal wall of said base for positioning said contacts, whereby saidbase and said plunger substantially shield said contacts from said lamp.

6. A connector for a lamp comprising an insulating base with a cavityopening into a frontal wall thereof, a contact positioning plungerarranged in said cavity for reciprocating movement relative to saidbase, a pair of contacts positioned in said base on .the rearward sideof said frontal wall, said contacts being disposed in directionstransverse to the path of movement of said plunger, bearings pivotallysupporting said contacts intermediate the ends thereof for a rotatingmotion about said bearings, said bearings being disposed transverselyoutwardly from said cavity and on the rearward side of said frontalwall, the front face of the inner end of each of said contacts beingexposed by said plunger from the frontal wall of said base forengagement with the end of an associated contact of said lamp, aseparate spring engaging each of said contacts outwardly of theassociated bearing, said springs rotating said contacts about saidhearings to bias frontal wall of said base and said plunger otherwiseshielding said contacts from radiant energy emitted by said lamp.

7. A connector for a lamp comprising an insulating base with a cavityopening into a frontal wall thereof, at least one contact positionedgenerally parallel to and behind said frontal wall, a bearing rotatablysupporting said contact intermediate its ends on the rearward side ofsaid frontal wall, said bearing being disposed transversely outwardlyfrom said cavity and on the rearward side of said frontal Wall, saidcontact rotating about said bearing, and the inner end of said contactextending into said cavity, the front face of said inner end of saidcontact being exposed in said cavity from the frontal wall of said basefor engagement with the end of an associated contact of said lamp, and aspring engaging the other end of said contact on the other side of saidbearing and rotating 8 said contact about said bearing to bias saidinner end of said contact into engagement with said associated contactof said lamp, saidfrontal Wall shielding said bearing and the majorportion of said contact from radiant energy emitted by the lamp.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS761,473 Goodman May 31, 1904 1,895,120 Baker Jan. 24, 1933 2,176,137Iurkat Oct. 17, 1939 2,285,175 Sparling June 2, 1942 2,447,676 WebsterAug. 24, 1948 2,716,739 Lemmers Aug. 30, 1955 2,774,050 Logan Dec. 11,1956 3,002,172 Lennox Sept. 26, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 858,730 GermanyDec. 8, 1952 615,524 Great Britain Jan. 7, 1949 768,500 Great BritainFeb. 20, 1957 304,540 Switzerland Mar. 16, 1955

7. A CONNECTOR FOR A LAMP COMPRISING AN INSULATING BASE WITH A CAVITYOPENING INTO A FRONTAL WALL THEREOF, AT LEAST ONE CONTACT POSITIONEDGENERALLY PARALLEL TO AND BEHIND SAID FRONTAL WALL, A BEARING ROTATABLYSUPPORTING SAID CONTACT INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS ON THE REARWARD SIDE OFSAID FRONTAL WALL, SAID BEARING BEING DISPOSED TRANSVERSELY OUTWARDLYFROM SAID CAVITY AND ON THE REARWARD SIDE OF SAID FRONTAL WALL, SAIDCONTACT ROTATING ABOUT SAID BEARING, AND THE INNER END OF SAID CONTACTEXTENDING INTO SAID CAVITY, THE FRONT FACE OF SAID INNER END OF SAIDCONTACT BEING EXPOSED IN SAID CAVITY FROM THE FRONTAL WALL OF SAID BASEFOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE END OF AN ASSOCIATED CONTACT OF SAID LAMP, AND ASPRING ENGAGING THE OTHER END OF SAID CONTACT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF SAIDBEARING AND ROTATING SAID CONTACT ABOUT SAID BEARING TO BIAS SAID INNEREND OF SAID CONTACT INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID ASSOCIATED CONTACT OF SAIDLAMP, SAID FRONTAL WALL SHIELDING SAID BEARING AND THE MAJOR PORTION OFSAID CONTACT FROM RADIANT ENERGY EMITTED BY THE LAMP.